5 Secret Clutter Spots to Watch Out For

On the surface, your house might seem organized—but think again. There are all sorts of hidden spots in your home where clutter and junk reside. When you’re living somewhere like New York City, where decent closet space is hard to come by (if not an outright urban legend), it’s even more important to make the most of the space you have. Investigate these five places in your house to see if any could use a good spring cleaning:

Under the BedSometimes the space underneath our beds seems like a brilliant place to store things. The problem: We never see the items unless we’re really looking for them. As the saying goes, “out of sight, out of mind.” In the end, you’ll have a ton of items under your bed that you don’t even remember storing. To make the most of the space, consider a bed frame with built-in shelves or drawers so any items that live under your mattress are secure and organized.

Medicine and Bathroom CabinetsIt is easy for our bathroom cabinets to turn into a nightmare. How long has that aspirin been in there? Is any of that makeup a holdover from your high school days? Since when do you need 3 different kinds of toothpaste at the ready? Empty all of your storage places in the bathroom and take inventory. You’re guaranteed to put back less, once your filter out the old prescriptions, nearly empty deodorant and those three (clumpy) mascaras.

Kitchen CabinetsWhile your dish cabinet might not need organizing, there are sure to be a few cabinets you completely forget about. For example, take a look under your sink—it may have become a way station for everything you didn’t know what to do with. It’s also common to have a cabinet for rarely used appliances, which can include waffle irons, quesadilla makers or panini presses. It might be time to toss them out, donate them to a culinary friend or put them in your personal storage unit.

ClosetsJust because closets are made for storing doesn’t mean they can’t be tidy. Take a look at your overhead shelves, where stacks of books, old clothes (that may or may not fit) and old paperwork (taxes from 2006, anyone?) can reside. And if your shoes are constantly found everywhere in your apartment, check out what’s keeping them out of the closet. It might be best to call a friend who can give you an honest (if potentially harsh) opinion about the state of your clothing.

Junk DrawersWe’ve all got them. The drawer where everything that doesn’t have a place goes. Small bins are a great way to organize the objects you’ll find in here, but the garbage can might be the best way to go for some of these things.